I only buy fish, chicken and pork. I never buy beef. I like beef. I'd like to cook beef, but find shopping for the right cut overwhelming. And I'm never really sure how to cook which cut.

This is one thing that I do with a pork tenderloin and chicken breasts.

I sear it on two sides, for 5 mins each side. Then I put it in a pot (with a lid) with sauted onions, a couple of cans of beans, a container of salsa... for 30-45 mins (30 chicken, 45 pork loin). Then I cut/shred the meat and reduce the bean/salsa mixture.

It makes a great taco or enchilada filling. The meat is always tender and cooked perfectly

What cut of beef would work with this kind of treatment?

Thanks!

Denise, if you can find a brisket-like-is-used-for-corned-beef, that would work great for your recipe, but in a slow cooker, like Peg suggested; plus the corned-beef-brisket-cuts should run anywhere from 2-4 lbs, giving you the ability to have leftovers.

The other thing I'd suggest is ground sirloin. Put it in the skillet at the same time as the onions, and it should brown right with the onions getting soft. Then add your beans and salsa, and let it simmer--without a lid--until it's the thickness you want. To reduce the fat a bit more, cook just the meat, then rinse it in a colander after it browns, THEN add the rest of the stuff. It shouldn't take but 20 minutes or so.

In general, the less expensive the cut, the tougher the meat, and the longer and lower it should be cooked for maximum tenderness. The one cut that I keep on hand is a sirloin. It's typically in the middle of the price range. It slices very thin when cut across the grain, so it works very well for stir-frys and sandwich meat (I cut before I cook). It grills really well, and then we can cut off the amount we want (our market sells sirloins anywhere from just under a pound to nearly 3 lbs); when people come over for dinner, it's a great piece to have on hand and easy to grill to medium, which nearly everyone will eat.

(They were making Beef and Broccoli at the store on Friday. It looked really good; the recipe gives some good directions on using a sirloin for a stir-fry.)

Anything you think you've seen on a menu as a "steak", don't buy, unless you want a grilled/pan-fried/broiled steak. And, like Peg said, a good meat market is a wonderful, wonderful place. Not everyone is like us, but we do drive 45 minutes to get to ours because the cost, quality, and service are worth it. Plus they have packages, so we can shop there once a month and have all the beef/pork/chicken/veal/fish/sausage we need for the whole month, and then some.

I'm not good with cuts of beef either Denise but I wanted to suggest you consider doing the same thing with the beef only put it in the crockpot after you sear it. Then let it go 8 hours or so on low. You can use really inexpensive cuts of beef then...chuck steak/roast or round steak/roast I'm sure would work and they are often on really good sale. Otherwise, I would suggest taking your question to the butcher (even maybe see if you can find an elusive locally owned meat market and pay a bit more the first time). They are going to understand what cuts will tolerate the shorter cooking time.

Sounds yuuuuummmy!

Peg